Welcome to our little corner of the Internet. Kick your feet up and stay a while.
One of the popular and well-researched non-medication alternatives for bipolar and unipolar depression is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), a method of helping people identify and change unhealthy patterns of thought and/or behavior. CBT looks at the interaction between feelings, thoughts and behavior, and helps participants learn to analyze the connections between them and how they influence each other. For example, …
Moodsurfing has often recommended mindfulness exercises for those grappling with bipolar and other chronic illnesses, but is it possible to go beyond exercises and make mindfulness a part of your everyday life? One way to do this is to take an activity that you do habitually, like turning on the coffee maker in the morning, brushing your teeth, or whatever …
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) teaches users a technique called “Acceptance Self-Talk”. This is a series of exercises that trains people to substitute new thoughts for old ones and encourages them to evaluate their thoughts and accept only what seems true and helpful. Depression is often characterized by recurrent negative thoughts that drag one down and become barriers to taking …
Exercise, diet and sleep: three important ingredients for health, and also for mood stability. Keeping our bodies healthy is a vital strategy for mental health as well. All body systems work together, so it makes sense that a healthy balance in one area will contribute to a healthy balance in others. Try this experiment: make a chart or note of …
It’s that time of year again – in the United States Daylight Savings Time begins tomorrow morning! The time shifts this coming Sunday and it’s important to remember that this change can impact your mood. Research has shown that shifting your sleep cycle to getting up later can increase your risk for depression. This time change already comes during a …
Americans with bipolar are more likely than Europeans to marry someone with a similar diagnosis, according to a study by Robert M. Post, MD, of the Bipolar Collaborative Network, Bethesda, Maryland, and the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, George Washington University. Post and colleagues recruited volunteers with bipolar I from four cities in the USA and three cities in …
We’ve discussed the mental health strategy called “Acceptance and Commitment Therapy” several times in Moodsurfing (see below for links), and it’s an important feature of our Bipolar Disorder Workbook. It’s a multifaceted approach, and there’s a lot to unpack. This post explores the “commitment” part of it all. Once you’ve trained yourself to look squarely at your reality, without focusing …
Sharing information about a diagnosis, disclosure, can be a constant tension for people with bipolar. On the one hand, you need a support network that includes family, friends, co-workers and even employers. On the other hand, any or all of these people may create more difficulties, or even be a part of the problem from the beginning. Dr. Cannon Thomas …
Gateway Psychiatric Services is excited to announce the release of our latest book: The Bipolar Disorder Workbook from Callisto Media. Designed to educate and motivate people who have questions, particularly about Bipolar II and cyclothymia, the workbook walks users through a series of structured exercises, beginning with a basic checklist intended to identify symptoms that may warrant further investigation. The …
Gateway Psychiatric Services is delighted to announce the release of our latest book, The Bipolar Disorder Workbook from Callisto Media. The Workbook is intended to be of use to those who are just beginning to think bipolar may be an issue for them as well as those who have been journeying with bipolar for a longer time. It is also …
Biofeedback is a stress management technique that uses devices that give you information about your body’s physiologic response to stress. The idea is to provide you with information that would ordinarily be outside of your conscious awareness, such as your body temperature, blood pressure, or heart rate. Generally, there are three stages of biofeedback: Developing increased awareness of the body …
Anxiety and panic attacks are some of the “comorbidities” (concurrently occurring disorders) that folks with bipolar have to contend with. Another concern is the complicated relationship between bipolar and post-traumatic stress disorder. Social anxiety is often found in conjunction with bipolar. Although many people think bipolar is characterized by the extraverted and friendly attitude often experienced during hypomanic episodes, the …
Seems like recognizing depression ought to be easy, and that it’s so widespread that it can hardly be hidden, but the reality is that many people with major clinical depression are not diagnosed, or are given insufficient treatment to address the realities of their situation. Major depression is defined as an episode in which for at least two weeks one …
What does it mean to have a diagnosis of Bipolar I or II? For some, finally getting a diagnosis can be a relief, as it was for Demi Lovato, whose story was shared in Moodsurfing a few weeks ago. For others, not so much. Mariah Carey was diagnosed with bipolar back in 2011, but she says “I didn’t want to …
New research may lead to a risk calculator that can help predict which young people at risk of bipolar go on to develop either bipolar 1 or bipolar 2. Young people with a history of depression and some features of bipolar (a brief period of being energized, for example, that doesn’t meet criteria for hypomania) are at risk for developing …
Building healthy habits can be very important in managing mood. Regular sleep, exercise and diet can play a key role in reinforcing a stable mood. As a result, I regularly work with clients to identify healthy habits they would like to form and steps they can take in doing so. Most of the the time they are core habits such …
A recent study has found some evidence of a link between mania and nitrated meats (meat sticks, beef jerky, turkey jerky, and possibly other foods such as hot dogs). Research in bipolar has focused on genetic links, but diet is also thought to have significant impacts on mood disorders. The new study is quite small and used survey data followed …
Consider the value of “boring”. Steve Jobs reportedly once said “I’m a big believer in boredom” –meaning maybe that if life is quiet and predictable enough you may have time to think, time to daydream, and time to make new decisions and choices. For people living with bipolar, boring can be a tough goal. But structure is everything when it …
A new study from the UK has shown that disruption in the daily rhythms (circadian rhythms) of work and rest is clearly linked to mood disorders and major depression, as well as other concerns: lower subjective happiness, feelings of loneliness, and mood instability. Circadian rhythms are the natural paths our lives take, with patterns of work during daylight hours and …
Why are there so many famous bipolar people? Will a diagnosis of bipolar make you famous? Probably not, at least not immediately. Nonetheless, it is a reality that a surprising number of famous people, contemporary and historical have a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of bipolar. Winston Churchill, Isaac Newton, Ernest Hemingway, and other household names are included in this inventory. …
